It’s About Solving Problems, Not Connecting Things

Earlier this week Google purchased Nest for $3.2 billion in cash.

On the heels of this news, reporters and companies in the smart home / home automation / home monitoring space are getting giddy about what is surely going to be a big year for the “Internet of Things”.  However, Nest’s goal was never simply to connect consumers to their thermostat, but to solve the enormous problem of wasted energy usage at home.  Canary shares Nest’s focus on solving problems in intelligent ways – ones that cost billions of dollars each year in expensive fees, burglaries and false alarms.

We don’t believe in the Internet of Things… yet.  In the same way 3D TV was a feature few consumers were demanding (see also: curved TVs), things like the connected Crock-Pot are technologies in search of a problem.  Rather than re-imagining solutions for today’s consumer, too many companies are taking amazing 21st century technology and cramming it into old solutions.

This is nothing new.  The Model T looked a lot like a horse-drawn carriage without a horse.  Many of the first TV programs were existing theatrical, radio and music performances. E-mail has a CC line, even though no one is actually “carbon copied”. We borrow from our past to create the future.

We believe the best innovations come from investing time in really understanding the problem.  Once that’s done, elegant solutions become enabled by technology rather than focused on it.

We’re happy to see Nest being rewarded for their solutions. The focus Nest has brought to the smart home space makes us that much more excited to share our solution to home security.

Backers – May is going to be here before you know it!